This volume brings together some of the lost important essays written over the last two decades by one of India's most distinguished social scientists. They focus upon the relationship between various forms of inequality and distinction (race, caste, tribe, ethnicity and gender) and on concepts of the person; on the relationship between the values of equality and individualism; and on the ambivalent role of the modern Indian state as the guuarantor of these values.

This volume brings together some of the lost important essays written over the last two decades by one of India's most distinguished social scientists. They focus upon the relationship between various forms of inequality and distinction (race, caste, tribe, ethnicity and gender) and on concepts of the person; on the relationship between the values of equality and individualism; and on the ambivalent role of the modern Indian state as the guuarantor of these values.

Democracy rests on a delicate balance between two principles that may be called the rule of numbers and the rule of law. To ensure that the rule of law is not overwhelmed by the weight of numbers, democracy requires institutions. Examining democracy from an institutional perspective, this book studies such institutions as the Parliament, the courts of justice, and the systems of political parties, and brings out the contradictions between the ideals of democracy-such as equality and liberty-and the actual operation of government and politics. It introduces the reader to the distinction...